Brussels, 19/02/2004 (Agence Europe) - During their meeting with the President of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, and several Commissioners- Loyola de Palacio (Transport), Erkki Liikanen (Enterprise) and Philippe Busquin (Research), and representatives of the cabinets of Commissioners Pascal Lamy (Trade) and Margot Wallström (Environment) on Wednesday, representatives of the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) had the opportunity to voice their concerns about "increasingly dense, complex and often contradictory regulations weighing down on European industry", and to stress the need to "promote competitiveness as the principle motor of European policy" (see EUROPE of 17 February, p.9).
According to an ACEA press release, industrial problems in this sector are "made worse by the lack of acceptance" on the part of consumers of several objectives championed by the EU. The industrial delegation, led by chairman Bernd Pischetsrieder (President of the Volkswagen Group), also called for "adequate evaluation of all future legislation, and a reinforcement of the research and development policy and of the innovation policy". The delegation said that ACEA hoped to set up a working group on the automotive industry.